Retired engineer John Wider, 59, is greeted by a supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump as he holds up a sign reading "Welcome Refugees" at the international arrivals terminal at Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, California, U.S. on June 29, 2017. REUTERS/Mike Blake/

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By Yeganeh Torbati and Mica Rosenberg(Reuters)

The U.S. State Department has told refugee agencies it will sharply pare back the number of offices across the country authorized to resettle people in 2018 as President Donald Trump cuts the number of refugeesallowed into the United States

The announcement was made at a Dec. 1 meeting in Washington with State Department officials and representatives from nine major refugee agencies, several executives of the agencies said.

Advocates said the decision is likely to lead to the closure of dozens of resettlement offices around the country, potentially leaving some refugees without access to services that help them integrate into American life. Several state refugee coordinators said they had also been made aware of the closures.

Refugee resettlementin the United States is handled by nine non-profit agencies that receive funding from the federal government for some of their refugee work. They partner with, or oversee, hundreds of local offices in nearly every state that help new arrivals with basic tasks like enrolling children in school, arranging doctors’ visits and applying for Social Security cards and other documents.

Though the agencies are independent, they must get government approval for where they will resettle new refugees

Aid workers and state officials involved in refugee resettlement said the agencies were informed by the State Department in the Dec. 1 meeting that offices expected to handle fewer than 100 refugees in fiscal year 2018 will no longer be authorized to resettle new arrivals, which means many of them will have to close. There are about 300 resettlement offices spread across 49 states, and advocates estimate several dozen are at risk, though shuttering plans will not be finalised until next year.

The Trump administration has said it wants refugees to assimilate quickly, both to promote national security and so that they can become self-sufficient.

Refugee advocates say the closure of local offices will undermine that goal. They say the offices play a crucial role in helping newcomers traumatized from having fled conflict or persecution. Even if no new refugees are resettled by the offices they still have an obligation to help those already here, they say.

If refugees lose access to “services to help them navigate the processes of registering for school, and English classes and finding a job, that will mean that it will take longer for them to navigate life in the United States and contribute to our economy,” said Robert Carey, who directed the Office of Refugee Resettlement under former President Barack Obama.